Friday, September 05, 2003 (69)GIVE ME CHILDREN. Or else I die. An emphatic and desperate cry from Rachel, [ewe]. Under the circumstances Rachel is anything but a docile lamb. The whole story of Jacob, Leah and Rachel is a prophecy reaching down to the end of the age. Jacob was deceived into receiving Leah as his first wife, when the love of his life was Rachel. So great was his love for Rachel that he worked for his father-in-law for fourteen years in order to have her as his wife. Gen. 30:1 The human problems displayed in this family are recorded in this chapter. One thing is certain, where there should have been rejoicing and gladness because of the children given them, there was anger, envy and competition.
THE LORD HEARD RACHEL. We see in the history of these women who conceived after a long period of time and waiting on the Lord, that they went through many testings and trials. The Lord had not forgotten, Rachel but in the process of working out His will and timing, He closed her womb. He recognized her petitions which she had made to Him. He hearkened, He responded to her appeal. Rachel rejoiced at the birth of her son and proclaimed that the Lord had removed her disgrace and reproach of being a barren woman. Child bearing was of utmost importance to the women of that day. In this case it was the building of a dynasty who were to be the people of the Lord. She birthed Joseph [meaning, adding] and prophesied that the Lord would add another son to her. Gen. 30:24 Joseph became the deliverer of Israel and is beautiful type of the Lord Jesus.
A NEW NAME. Jacob, renamed by the Lord. With his new name came a new character. He was no longer Jacob [usurper] but now is Israel {he will rule as God]. Had Israel, man and nation, walked consistently with the Lord what great authority they would have had in the earth. Gen. 35:10 The same is true with the church of our day. Walk with the Lord and rule. The Lord gave promise of a great posterity, perhaps even more extensive that most imagine. The promise of the Lord also included the land. For these promises to be accomplished there must be a commitment to the Lord. No responsibility, no land. Israel can only be delivered from their dilemma by a full, whole hearted surrender to the Lord Jesus. He is their answer, and the solution for all of mankind’s problems. Jacob erected a stone for a pillar to commemorate the promise of the Lord. As they journeyed on Rachel, gave birth to her second son. She died in giving birth. Odd, she had prayed for children or death and she experienced both. With her last breath she called this son, Ben-oni [son of my sorrows], but his father called him Benjamin [son of the right hand]. The church in facing the sorrows of the last days will be delivered of a man child, who is caught up to God and His throne. The son of her sorrows, but the son of the right hand or a ruler of eternity. The ultimate purposes of the Lord are foreshadowed through out the book. Rev. 12:5.